As if the disappointment and heartbreak were not enough for Ana Ivanovic amid the end of her marriage with Bastian Schweinsteiger, the online commentary presenting her as a golddigger has added another blow. Instead of recognizing a former world number one with an illustrious tennis career, people with no understanding of her achievements are portraying her as a woman whose supposed plan was to marry rich and cash out on a football player.
It has been common knowledge for months that Ivanovic and Schweinsteiger were no longer together. Rumors about their split circulated as early as April, and some tabloids hinted that another woman might have been involved, particularly after Bastian was seen multiple times with Silva Kapitanova soon after the separation.
In July, Ivanovic’s representative, Christian Schertz, confirmed that the couple was separating due to “irreconcilable differences.” And now, according to BILD, Ivanovic officially filed for divorce in November at the Munich District Court. She has also reportedly filed for child support in Palma de Mallorca, where she lives with their three sons Luka, Leon and Teo.
@dailymailsport Ana Ivanovic has filed for divorce from World Cup winner Bastian Schweinsteiger after nine years of marriage, after their reported split earlier this year. Ivanovic and Schweinsteiger were one of the sporting world’s most recognisable couples due to their success in their respective fields, and married amid a flurry of press in Venice in 2016. The couple first met in 2014, during the former German international’s long spell at Bayern Munich. Schweinsteiger moved to Man United a year later in 2015, as Ivanovic was beginning wind down her glittering tennis career. Their wedding took place in July 2016, with Ivanovic, who memorably won the French Open in 2008, then retiring from tennis in December 2016. Ivanovic’s representative Christian Schertz announced in July that the couple were separating due to ‘irreconcilable differences’. According to BILD, Ivanovic officially filed for divorce in November at the Munich District Court. Ivanovic, a former world number one, has reportedly filed for child support in Palma de Mallorca, where she lives with their three sons, Luka, Leon, and Teo. Their youngest son was born in 2023. Daily Mail Sport reported in April that the couple were in ‘deep crisis’ due to the strain being put on their marriage amid differing lifestyles. #bastianschweinsteiger #anaivanovic #news #divorce #long ♬ original sound – Daily Mail Sport
A Daily Mail Sport TikTok recently covered the divorce, and the comments were wild. People were acting like Schweinsteiger was the helpless victim and Ivanovic had masterminded some plot to grab half his hard-earned money. Seriously? Here are a few of the actual comments people left:
“This is a pattern with footballer’s wives. They get divorced within a few years of the players retirement”
“Cash out day … perfect timing for her.”
“She waited until he completed his career to split his fortune. Good business.”
“Another baller losing half of what he made for his own talent and ability.”
“Well there goes half the money he has ever played for.”
A shocking number of commenters invoked the “Hakimi formula,” an internet meme based on footballer Achraf Hakimi’s divorce case. In that story, people online claimed Hakimi had put all his assets under his mother’s name so his wife couldn’t get anything in the settlement.
“Did Bastian study Hakimiology or not? If not he is cooked.”
“Hope Bastian attended the same school with Achraf Hakimi.”
“I believe the Hakimi formula would be needed in this case”
I could not believe what I was reading. Is it possible that the majority of Daily Mail’s TikTok audience has no idea who Ana Ivanovic is? That they are willing to put all the blame on a woman who gave birth to three children and the youngest one is just two years old?
What’s worse, when a few people tried to explain that Ivanovic was one of the most successful tennis players and long considered one of the most desirable athletes in the world, commenters didn’t back off. They doubled down with the same tired lines: if she’s so rich and successful, why is she asking for money? Ugh.
People acting shocked that a mother is following the legal process for child support are either uninformed or pretending to be. Child support reflects the children’s right to the standard of living of both parents. It is not a jackpot. It is not a punishment. It is not a scheme. It is parenting.
The willingness of strangers to erase a woman’s entire career, ignore her financial independence and reduce her to a stereotype is genuinely concerning. Framing a woman who is simply exercising her legal right to support her children as a golddigger is not only insulting and unfair, it shows that not even global superstars are exempt from this kind of treatment.
